The 2008–09 Vancouver Canucks season was the 39th season in the National Hockey League.
On June 17, 2008, the Canucks named Ryan Walter as an assistant coach. He joined head coach Alain Vigneault and assistant coach Rick Bowness on the Canucks' coaching staff.[2] Walter, 50, played in 1,003 NHL games over 15 seasons with Washington, Montreal, and Vancouver, scoring 264 goals and 382 assists. He won the Stanley Cup with Montreal in 1986. A native of New Westminster, British Columbia, Walter was the second overall pick by the Washington Capitals in the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft.
The Canucks lost two key veterans to free agency. Markus Naslund, the Canucks' captain for the previous seven seasons, signed a two-year, $8 million contract with the New York Rangers, while Pitt Meadows native Brendan Morrison signed a one-year, $2.75 million contract with the Anaheim Ducks.
The Canucks also lost a promising young defenceman in Luc Bourdon, who died in a motorcycle accident in his hometown of Shippagan, New Brunswick. The Canucks honoured Bourdon with a tribute in the season opener, October 9, against the Calgary Flames.
Among the Canucks' roster additions was Steve Bernier, who was acquired from the Buffalo Sabres for a second- and third-round draft pick, and Pavol Demitra, who signed a two-year, $8 million contract.
The Canucks announced on September 4, 2008, that they will honour Linden in a pre-game ceremony on December 17, 2008 before a game against the Edmonton Oilers. His jersey number, 16, will be retired by the team, joining former captain Stan Smyl as the second Canuck to have his number retired.
The Canucks' 2008 pre-season began on September 12 with the opening of their annual prospects training camp. The camp consisted of 22 players and was held in Vancouver, British Columbia at both General Motors Place and the University of British Columbia campus, as well as in Camrose, Alberta.[3] The prospect camp was then followed by the main training camp, held over two days beginning September 20 in Whistler, British Columbia.[4]
On September 30, 2008, the Canucks named Roberto Luongo as the twelfth captain in team history, with Luongo becoming only the seventh goaltender in NHL history to be named team captain. NHL rules prevent goaltenders from physically wearing the captain's letter "C", however, they do not prevent goaltenders from being named captain. The Canucks also named Willie Mitchell, Mattias Ohlund, and Ryan Kesler as alternate captains. Mitchell assumed the duties of dealing with officials during games, while Ohlund took faceoffs and performed other ceremonial duties.[5]
bold – qualified for playoffs, y – division winner, p – Presidents' Trophy winner CE – Central Division, NW – Northwest Division, PA – Pacific Division
Legend: Win (2 points) Loss (0 points) Overtime/shootout loss (1 point)
Legend: Win Loss
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalty Minutes
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Vancouver. Stats reflect time with the Canucks only. ‡Denotes player no longer with the team. Stats reflect time with Canucks only.
Vancouver's picks at the 2008 NHL Entry Draft in Ottawa, Ontario.
On October 25, 2008, the Canucks retired the jersey number '7' in honour of the fans, the "seventh Canuck". Originally, the plan was to have a randomly selected season ticket holder unveil the banner before every home game and have it raised to the rafters, but after the first game it was abandoned.
The Canucks' AHL affiliate based in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The Moose' home arena is the MTS Centre. The team has been affiliated with the Vancouver Canucks since the 2000–01 AHL season.
The Canucks' ECHL affiliate based in Victoria, British Columbia. The Salmon Kings' home arena is the Save-On-Foods Memorial Centre. The team has been affiliated with the Vancouver Canucks since the 2006–07 ECHL season.
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